Change of Heart
The shinobi world is a strange place, he thought. There’s killer and wimpy old men, and the same goes for children it seems. Nations can be harmed by someone who hasn’t even reached adulthood yet. K knew this all too well, from his own experiences as a teenager… Now, he had come upon another teenager with world-shaking powers. Wanted by the Wisdom Country for his rampage through their land, he had been exiled from Konohagakure because the village refused to protect such a criminal. Now a year later, no one had found him. He had gone off the grid. The thing was, that many of Wisdom had tried to find him, to capture him and bring him back. But they should have given the young man more credit a long time ago, he did nearly kill their leader… After many months of failure, the Wisdom Country found themselves poised to find this man, even with the help of another nation. With Kumogakure rising in power, a few shinobi from the Country approached the ANBU requesting assistance, due to the recent reputation the ANBU has gotten thanks to their leader, K himself. Employing the Kinkaku Force, K was able to lead them in tracing this elusive teenager’s steps and tracking him down to his current location. This led him to the Land of Grass. Known for its jungles and wildlife, the Grass was ideal for getting away from everything, as long as you steered clear of any hidden villages. Many outcasts lived in the countryside. Or wanderers. K’s pursuit of Seika led him here of all places. And now, within a couple days of arriving, he had found the teen himself. It was early morning, dawn had broke about an hour ago, daylight beginning to light the place in a golden luster. K had found Seika Uchiha’s camp, set around tall trees and mushrooms. Kei suspected that many of them were similar to the ones found in Kumogakure’s Tropical Region and Village, where Kwas leader. He felt quite at home. Continuing the stakeout, he activated his powerful sensory capabilities. Uchiha were truly deadly. What a powerful teen, K thought. That’s why I can’t leave him running about as a danger to others. Growing up in war-torn Kumogakure, he knew the stakes all too well. He would have to do something about this Uchiha, before it was too late. Seika was a wild card, an Uchiha wild card. His home was never safe with those running about. It had been one entire year after the death of his beloved brother. Since that day he has constantly regretted the day he decided to take a vacation. The faithful night is what changed his life forever, he was considered a criminal by the village he sworn to protect at his sensei's request. Although Naruto was not at fault, he was backed into a drastic decision by the threat of war from surrounding countries despite what he did for the entire shinobi world during the fourth world war. That year was everything but easy for the young Uchiha. He was most angry with himself for walking down the same path of Sasuke Uchiha. Sometime during his time with his road to redemption, he was able to meet with his brother and then met his to finally find his true purpose. Even though he had forgiven himself the world still had not forgotten the crimes he committed. He knew all to well that soon he will have to face the shinobi world again. Kei pulled out a scroll, and summoned forth a decent amount of sand. Heating it up with natural electrical current, natural energy that was, sand in its gaseous state filled the air. It wouldn't be long until the sand filled the area, and then made it had to breathe. It was comparable to the finished version of the Hiding in Mist Technique only the mist cloud was replaced with a sand dust cloud that rolled into Seika's camp and the surrounding area. Inside the camp, Seika was quietly sitting on the ground meditating with his legs crossed and fists together. Remaining completely still, canceling out all other outside disturbances such as the animals that roamed through the forest. Letting the energy of the world flow through his body. He had been sitting in the same spot for hours. Suddenly feel the presence of chakra caught his attention, ending his mediation with a couple coughs from the dense sand. "What's this?" He thought as he quickly jumped to his feet to seek out the cause of the dust. "Someone is planning at attack." Exiting the his camp, he saw the area filled with dust from every angle which made it a little hard for him to breathe. "They could be planning something. I need to be on guard." Hmm, Kei thought, as he created a clone that approached Seika. The clone barely had any chakra with it and was to test any attack pattern. Drawing kunai and tagging them with flash bombs, the clone tossed it into the campsite before jumping into the fray itself. The flash masked its arrival and allowed the clone to attack with a powerful Lightning Release: Lariat, equipped with Lightning Release Chakra Mode of the Thunders Sword style. Eyes would be next to useless against this attack, as they would be blinded but Kei possessed many sensory tactics. He was not limited to eyes alone. But he doubted Seika would be limited either. With his akin sensory perception on atop of his 'sixth sense', Seika could thoroughly feel the movement of Kei's clone through their surrounding even with the slightest step, Seika could feel it. "This person is quick." Stomping the ground, Seika send his own chakra through it to properly locate the speeding clone. Using his sheer strength, Seika caught the clone's arm just before it could make contact. "A clone?" Comato stated further tightening his grip on the clone. Generating fire in his mouth, he proceeded blow the intense flames on the clone. If he knew where the clone was, you'd think he would know not to grab him. Oh well, K thought. As Seika grabbed the clone, the outward cloak produced by the Chakra Mode would greatly shock Seika's hand and arm. Tightening his grip on the clone would only allow the electricity to stun and paralyze the man's arm and hand. By the time the fire emerged from the Uchiha's mouth, the task would of been finished. His electricity would of also benefited from any clothing, spreading the shocking effects to the rest of the man's body. This would only be the primary effect of grabbing the clone directly... As for the clone, it let itself be destroyed, allowing electromagnetic energy and chakra to feed into the sand cloud and air and stay. With the electrical charged atmosphere, navigation could cause a powerful shock to those who weren't careful. Good thing that wasn't my top speed not even close, K thought as he got the information from his clone. I'll need to match his speed if we need to result to a taijutsu battle. But that might not be necessary. Staying in his position, he studied what the Uchiha would do next. "That electric shock.... Did something to my body... now that his lightning as affected me I know he's going to use it to finished me." Seika stated as his was temporary paralyzed by the lightning. "Hagoromo... What do you suggest I do?" He asked as he was able to regain control of his body. "I've never encountered such a thing. You need to keep a close watch on the opponents moves. This person is capable of casting a genjutsu though this mist like substance. I'll keep constant regulation of your chakra flow to dispel any attempts of genjutsu. Just in case you need it, I will prepare that power." With Hagoromo concentrating on dispelling genjutsu, Seika was let to focus on the task at hand. Deep down he felt that the initial attack had a much higher purpose that just paralysis. He prepared to deal with such precaution. Activating his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, his dōjutsu technique Tennopawā, flood yang energy through his body to rid it of any impurities from within it. Once that was taken cares of, Seika released a shockwave in an attempt to rid the area of the dust. The dust was troublesome, it was mostly blown away by the shockwave, but a little of it lingered. K noted the power of yang and a deeper presence within the boy. So this is what they meant, it really is him. Using his sensory further, he sensed the use of yang within his target. Healing of some sort? No matter. Next phase shall begin regardless.. Drawing Nuibari, he lengthened the string as he held it. I'll attack at long range again. He thought as he whipped the special wire, as it teared through the trees in an arc that was to cross Seika's path. It wasn't silent, but it was thin and nearly invisible, especially at the time of day. K, with his other hand, shot a powerful amount of natural current (natural energy) into the sky. Hmm. He thought. He's not the only one who can play teams, am I right? He thought to Denji. Prepare for battle, my friend. "Hm?" Seika quietly exclaimed hearing the zipping sounds of the metal wire as it tore through trees causing them to collapse onto the grassy floor. Judging by the direction of the sound, Seika would attempt to cut the wire as it approached him. Quickly unsheathing his sword to aiming to split the wire in half. "Enough games. Show yourself already." Well, he did say to. Entering a speed level beyond his predecessor's top speed, Kei used LRCM and entered the fray, Nuibari in hand. Drawing the whip back, Seika's sword would still cut it, but it would take longer than expected. Only about a second, but in the heat of battle, that's all he needed. Nearing the space Seika occupied, he swung the sword at his torso. Seika had enough time to parry the attack but Kei's Nuibari was no normal sword and neither was Seika's. But he wanted to show Seika just how special his sword was. K made sure to rely on his sensing skill rather than his eyes to fight this teen. Nuibari also gained a coat of lightning from the usage of LRCM. By channeling Wind Release through his sword, would be able to effortlessly chop the metal wire. This allowed him to gain enough time to attempt to block Kei's sword attack with his own. Oddly enough, Kei's sword effortlessly passed through his Seika's own, landing a blow directly into the latter's chest. As the soulsword altered by Shizumu, Nuibari could ignore any physical entities and strike the soul of its target. A dangerous weapon, K's usage of it had succeeded, but he had not managed to kill the teenager in one go. Hagoromo's soul is very powerful. Not sure if one blow will be able to down such a man. Denji told Kei. I'm glad my friend was not killed though... This means you can bring him in right? Well, only because you asked. But why Hagoromo chose an Uchiha to bond with I will never know. Distasteful. Those monsters who nearly destroyed my home. I suppose Wisdom will prefer to have him in custody though... As Kei goes to grab Seika, as the teen had fallen due to the blow by Nuibari, he finds himself in realm of silky white. He recognizes this as the world of Tailed Beast Telepathy. Behind him, Denji Ryū muses what had occurred. "Hello, old friend." "Huh?" Kei asked, before looking in front of him. An old man sat before him, the Sage of the Six Paths, dressed in elegant white robes. "It is a pleasure to see you again, Denji. And it is also a pleasure to meet your host." He said referring to Kei. "I have brought the two of you here to stop you from taking Seika back to the Land of Wisdom." The man spoke in a rather serious tone. While speaking with the two Hagoromo was repairing Seika's injured soul. "It's a pity we have to meet like this, but K is determined to bring Seika to Wisdom or kill him." Denji said. "I suppose I should be honored. But reincarnation of the Sage or not, I'm going to have to take him back. I cannot let him roam free. Uchiha have done that one time too many already." Kei said. "The clan is full of monsters." He said referring to Madara and the victims of the Curse of Hatred. "There are many misconceptions in this world of shinobi, one of which is the Uchiha's Curse of Hatred. Believe it or not, it has more similarities than differences when compared to the Will of Fire of the Senju clan.." The elderly mam started. "Both of these legacies used to live within Seika. That was until he met me and decided to take on my will to correct his life of wrong doings....But to understand this change, you must hear his story.." Suddenly the white room became dark, transcending to a dark side of blue. Kei would then start to float as both Hagoromo and Denji vanished from sight. K would face what would appear to be a reflection of himself. Drip....the sound of water came as the reflection rippled changing Kei's reflection into Seika. "I suppose, you've been summoned to make me believe the vile notion that all of you crimsoned eyed clansmen are not evil. Well, you must have one hell of a tale to tell." Kei said. Sheathing Nuibari, he watched the reflection with content. Opposite to their short-lived battle, Kei watched the reflection directly in the eye. He was truly giving Seika the ability to prove him wrong. But K had known the terror of Uchiha all too well. Even now, I still remember the early days of my life. When we moved from place to place due to the increased lightning storms. The danger posed from them made sure we didn't stay anywhere for more than a month or two at most. I hated the moving. I despised the lives lost because of the disasters. And what caused those disasters, the sinister storms that killed some of the promising generation for the Cloud? Uchiha. K thought. I didn't have a life that was even remotely safe from the beginning. All because of those who deemed it necessarily to destroy the world and trap it to create something new. What can this near adult say, that can change my mind about his monsters of a clan? "Uhh. Do realize that this is a telepathic realm. I can literally hear your thoughts." Seika stated. "I can't expect you to change who you are just by apologizing for the tragedies my brethren caused. But that's not what I was planning to do anyway. I was actually going to tell you that you shouldn't judge all Uchiha the same....we are not all the same. Yeah I'd admit I've made some mistakes. But those mistakes don't personify who I am." Seika stared the man directly in the eyes. "I want to show you my past. To show you how I've became the person I am today." "As you said, I can here your thoughts too, I'm not new to this place," Kei remembered back to his times here with Denji before and Mamoru. "As well," he noted, "I can feel your motives are genuine.. That is why I have decided to here your story, Seika is it?" And then, he sat down in front of the teen. "Well the floor is yours. Let's hear this story of yours, and I'll see what to make of it." He relaxed as much as he could in the bleak world and gestured for Seika to begin his journey story. The Story Seika nodded in agreement as he was ready to began the story of how he came to exist. "It all started back during the end of the Fourth Shinobi war" he started. "Following the defeat of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki and the legendary confrontation of Naruto-sensei and Sasuke-sama. The final bout of Asura and Indra..." Seika's back was completely turned to Kei at this point. He continued to revise the past leading up to Hagoromo's decision to intervene with humans once again. "Watching as the world was unfolding into a new era of true peace, I couldn't help but feel as if something was bound to happen." Seika was speaking in Hagoromo's place, seeing as they are practically the same being. "I sent my energy to find a host that would've been suitable for protecting the world in my place. Which lend me to this body. Somehow my power was split into two equal halves. The sun and the moon were separate yet again. Not even seven months after their birth would something happen." Seika gashed his eyes back to Kei. "Black Zetsu managed to escape the prison that held him and my mother." "Well not necessarily escape," Kei interjected, drawing back on what he had found out from Black Zetsu minions. "He was able to direct all his doppelgangers here for various purposes, as I was informed at least. The world fell under peril again.." Kei ended. "But how did Black Zetsu change your life?" He mused. "And change it forever?" He kept eye contact as he gestured for the man to go on. "He know later on trash the Land of Rain. Forever splitting my family in half." Seika retorted slightly different showing his pending aggression. "Zetsu separated me from my brother. From there we go down different paths. Mine was lighter one, being brought to the Leaf and raised along side the Hokage's son. His was more malevolent and dark, my brother was being used solely because of the power he possessed; he, just like I would, inherited the Rinnegan from Hagoromo's power. He being a black variant of mine." Seika's eyes shifted and gain white tomoe and ripples to connect them. "Kaio would constantly get himself into things, causing an uproar in the world. Until the day we fought, neither of us could gain the upper hand.... After many tries of reached of to him, I was finally able to change his heart." "Hmm, I see." Kei said, going over what the youth said in his head. "But I'm still not convinced yet. It's nice that you were able to save your brother and all, but from what I understand, he became a "monster" so to speak for awhile. That's really still showing me how horrible your clan can be... However, is it that you were able to be kind and save your brother the facts I need to focus on? That you weren't evil? I see that but, how do I know that you aren't just a once in a lifetime thing? How do I know other Uchiha will help this cause too?" "I can't speak for the others.... I can only speak for myself and hope that you'll listen." Seika sighed, placing his hand on his hip while looking at Kei. "After turning my brother, I was assigned to watch him at all times... Everything was seemingly coming together... My brother and I even realized our legacy.... That was until, we decided to take vacation in the Land of Tsunamis. It was a little helpless land military-less peaceful nation. They were in possession of a major artifact. A blue gem stone." Seika paused and chuckled in reminiscence of the past events. "I still never figured out what the gem stone was for.... Anyway, that same day we arrived, the people there treated us like royalty. They somehow knew that we had power, they begged us to protect their gem stone." Seika continued to finish his story to Kei. And with some convincing from Hagoromo, Kei stopped in his quest to end Seika Uchiha. And perhaps, the whole Uchiha Clan. Dissolving this hatred was the first step, and it set Kei free from the traditional cycle others such as Nagato had known. Befriending this Uchiha, like he had done with others (such as Yoshida, Yoru and Itami) he also became friends with the sage known as Hago. And this seems to have had a certain effect to him as well, but as to what really is uncertain. But what was certain is that Kei had lost his need to destroy those related to who had destroyed his home. Instead, he learned he would need to them to combat another threat to the world at large. Listening to this carefully, he took Seika back to Kumogakure and began preparing for what could possibly be coming.